Taking a dig at the earlier government for failure to revive the Nizam Sugar Factory during it’s 10 years tenure, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao today reiterated that the government is ready to take it over if the sugar cane farmers come forward.
Replying to a short discussion on Agriculture in the Assembly today, he asked Congress leader Jeevan Reddy to become chairman of a society to take care of the sugar factory and involve the farmers. ‘Though 95 per cent of farmers are reluctant to run the factory, I have no qualms to handover the chairman post to Jeevan Reddy to lead NSF which needs 10 lakh mt sugarcane for functioning. Being a farmer I know the problems of the farmers and can understand related woes’. He suggested that legislators should hold a meeting to decide on the issue.
KCR said the Government is ready to re-launch the sugar factory which was famous in Asian continent, and added that the sugarcane farmers have to be ready to involve in it. ‘We have sent a team of 400 farmers to study the sugarcane production in Maharastra wherein farmers are producing 100 metric tons to 130 metric tons’, he said. KCR flayed the opposition for hasty comments and blaming the government as if it has committed a crime by late release of loan waiver which is not correct. Crop loan waiver will be done in four phases.
The Government sought the Centre to extend FRBM limit to 3.5 per cent from 3 per cent to get Rs 4000 crore additional funds. About 35 lakhs of farmers will benefit from loan waiver and the Government will address the problems of the farmers, if they are brought to the notice of the government. Stating that the government will bear interest if collected by the bankers against norms, he assured that the farmers will not be burdened through loans as they will waive off the rest of the 25 per cent during next budget (NSS).